Plants of Twin Peaks

On a moderate 4-mile hike, you'll pass some of the most interesting and beautiful plants in Mount Diablo State Park in California. Learn all about them via the 21 videos below.
Sponsored by Mount Diablo Interpretive Association, 2013. Featuring Sue Donecker, Ken Lavin, Jim Mitchell, Frank Valle-Riestra, and Mike Woodring, with Carl Magruder as John Muir. Map by Mike Woodring. Music by Phil Heywood.

Where we’re headed and what we’re likely to see. First up: buttercups and Ithuriel’s spear.

As you head up to Mitchell Rock, you’ll encounter two of the mountain’s three pine species. Learn about their edible nuts, how they got their names, and how to tell them apart.

Speakers: Ken Lavin and Carl Magruder as John Muir

In old England, people believed that a plant’s appearance hinted at how it might be used by people. That’s how Mount Diablo ended up with plants called “hound’s tongue,” “toothwort” (milkmaid), and “figwort” (bee plant)—all of which you can see along the Twin Peaks loop.

Speaker: Ken Lavin

This mound of pillow basalt is the perfect place for a short course in Mount Diablo geology, from Mount Zion (the quarry across the valley) to the ancient rocks on the summit.

Starting with an expedition in 1824, Scottish botanist David Douglas collected New World plants and sent them back to the Royal Horticultural Society in London. Among the discoveries that grow along the Twin Peaks Loop: poison oak, currant, Chinese houses, baby blue eyes, blue oak, and Mount Diablo globe lily.

You’ll encounter two vining plants: one with man-sized roots and cucumber-like fruits; the other with an “old man’s beard.”

Speaker: Ken Lavin

Amid the craggy oaks and sprawling meadows, don’t forget to look back at views of North Peak, the Diablo summit, Twin Peaks, and Mitchell Rock. On a spring day, check the pond ahead for reptiles and amphibians.